In bloom: High temps bring beauty early, but are stressful for others

Published 8:15 am, Thursday, March 22, 2012

Photo: Thomas Simonetti

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THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netJulie White of Midland looks up at magnolias at Dow Gardens in Midland on Wednesday. Walking through the gardens, with the recent warm weather and early blooming flowers, is like taking a walk in mid May. Get a look while you can — temperatures below 32 degrees could ruin the flowers for the entire year. less

THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netJulie White of Midland looks up at magnolias at Dow Gardens in Midland on Wednesday. Walking through the gardens, with the recent warm weather and early blooming flowers, is ... more

Photo: Thomas Simonetti

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THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netDaffodils in bloom.

THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netDaffodils in bloom.

Photo: Thomas Simonetti

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THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netGreek anemone flowers in bloom.

THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netGreek anemone flowers in bloom.

Photo: Thomas Simonetti

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THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netA magnolia flower.

THOMAS SIMONETTI | tsimonetti@mdn.netA magnolia flower.

Photo: Thomas Simonetti

In bloom: High temps bring beauty early, but are stressful for others

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While the Cornelian cherry trees and Korean rhododendrons are making for spectacular colorful blooms nearly two months early in Dow Gardens, a nest of owls most likely is in trouble at the Chippewa Nature Center because of the heat.

Record-setting temperatures continue today, with highs expected from 80 to 84, according to The National Weather Service. Temperatures are expected to cool a bit beginning Friday with highs 69 to 73, and then continue downward into next week with highs in the 50s to low 60s. Recent warm temperatures, about 27 degrees higher than normal, are attributed to a huge high-pressure system across the eastern United States, according to NASA.

At the nature center, a nest of great-horned owls probably are stressed because of the unusually high temperatures coupled with a lack of shade, said senior naturalist Janea Little.

“Seriously, it won’t surprise me if the babies succumb to the heat,” Little wrote in an e-mail Tuesday. “Mom has to stay hovered over them to keep them camouflaged while they are in this white, fluffy stage, but that just makes it hotter for them and her. Plus, ‘normal’ instincts say sit tight and keep them warm.”

The nest is high in a tree across the Chippewa River from the CNC Visitor Center. Little said she can see the owl panting.

“With no leaves on the tree, she has no shade,” Little wrote, “just sitting in the hot sun, covered with dark feathers (the better to absorb sunlight in the winter, if we can remember what that was like.)”

Little said other birds seem to be on normal schedules.

“Bluebirds are claiming nest boxes, woodpeckers are drilling out nest holes ... those are all ‘normal’ for mid-March. Tundra swan migration has already hit the peak, but it can range from mid-March to mid-April, so it isn’t earlier than a normally early year.”

She said amphibians are showing normal behavior, with one exception.

“Leopard frogs would not normally show themselves until mid-April, but there are lots of them out singing already,” she said. “It seems odd to hear them along with wood frogs, a distinctly spring frog, as well as chorus and peepers.”

She said migrating warblers might have trouble finding midges — an important, easy source of protein — if the insect emerges early.

“Our weird weather is unlikely to affect migration of neotropical species, because they aren’t getting the same mild winter we are.”

If all goes well, the great-horned owlets should be in the nest through April, possibly as late as mid-May, Little said.